Eight hours earlier, Buddy was struggling after falling through the ice on nearby Twinline Lakes. advertisement

The 50-kilogram Buddy found out the hard way not to follow Rascal, his older, apparently smarter and lighter playmate that lives on a four-hectare property nearby owned by Moreau's father, Paul Bourdon.

It was the frantic barking of Rascal, beagle-mix, that caught the attention of Lori Burns-McNutt who was driving by with her husband.

John McNutt said the black lab was struggling in water close to the road.

"There was too much open water and the ice looked really thin," he said.

Not being able to reach the dog, McNutt said he tried to keep the animal calm while his wife ran for help.

Buddy was only "20 to 40 feet from shore, but there was a creek there and a very muddy bottom, so we used the pontoon unit for safety purposes," said Fire Department Capt. Brian Hunt.

"The dog was very good, though, he was just hanging onto the ice waiting for us . . . it was interesting, he was so relaxed, but getting on the cool side."

Moreau said she'll "have to say a special thank you" to the firefighters and said it was "very heartwarming, I can't believe people will go out of their way and risk so much, and they don't even know us . . . or Buddy."